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Entries for June 2020
Stand Firm
By Ken Piper
It’s chic to take a stand these days, and that’s certainly true in the deer woods. With all due respect to still-hunters, the most effective way to hunt white-tailed deer is to take a stand in a productive spot and sit there quietly. Stands work for a number of reasons. We play a cat-and-mouse game with whitetails. Deer are using all t... READ MORE
Bottlenecks and Funnels
By Ken Piper
Anything that brings more deer into less space increases your odds of success. Last week’s tip about fences was an example of the funnel effect, where a natural or man-made feature concentrates deer travel. But there are many types of funnels and bottlenecks that give you a better chance of seeing deer. When studying aerial photos or scouting... READ MORE
Fences Concentrate Deer Trails
By Ken Piper
Use these obstacles to your advantage when selecting stand sites. Fences are common in many deer hunting areas, and it’s easy to find heavily used crossings. Deer cross fences by ducking under or jumping over. Either way, they tend to leave hair on the wire or wood. Where they duck under, they wallow out a distinct depression and kill the veg... READ MORE
Water, Water Everywhere
By Ken Piper
The more water on a property, the less important it is for hunting. Deer don’t have to drink every day to survive, but they will drink regularly if water is convenient. Water is particularly important to whitetails in the South and Southwest, where it can be hot during deer season, and in the West where water sources tend to be scarce. For hu... READ MORE
Doe-Re-Mi
By Ken Piper
Which does are best to target for removal, young or mature? You’ve probably read many articles recommending taking big, healthy does to help reduce deer populations. And that’s not bad advice. It’s just not necessarily the best advice in all situations. Some biologists are taking a new approach to thinning herds and are recommendi... READ MORE
Lightning Score on the Hoof
By Ken Piper
Score isn’t everything when it comes to whitetails, but there are times (like when hunting with an outfitter who has minimum scores for bucks) that knowing a buck’s score comes in handy. If you need to quickly guess a buck’s score, consider that an average 8-pointer that is just outside its ears and isn’t deficient in any wa... READ MORE